Here is another post I wrote on my blog, comparing my home town of NY, Paris where I am currently living, Shanghai where I worked for a year, and Seoul which is my motherland.
Growing up in New York, studying and working abroad in Seoul and Shanghai, and now living in Paris, I have experienced the best, worst, and most absurd that American, French, and Asian nightlife has to offer. In this post, I will document the similarities and (mostly) differences I've seen between New York, Paris, Seoul, and Shanghai. This obviously doesn't apply completely across the board, this is mostly based on my personal experiences in the specific places I frequent.
1. PREGAMING
NY: Meet at 10, girls show up at 11, Vodka/Red Bulls and leave the crib at 12
Paris: Expensive French dinner that starts at 9 and ends at 11, red wine and/or beer. Go straight to the club or bar with who you are with and in the clothes you are in.
Shanghai: When I was around, we started at the crib or at windows, but windows has shut down.
Seoul: No pregame.
2. TRANSPORTATION
NY: Metro then Cabs - unless someone is driving that night
Paris: SNCF then Metro.
Shanghai: Cabs - unless someone's driver is willing to work at 4 AM
Seoul: Metro then Cabs
3. THE VENUE
NY: Call whoever I know that is working at the bar/club that night, usually able to skip the line.
Paris: Same deal, but the cover prices are killing me. Language barrier was a serious issue in Sept/Oct but I am semi-functional now and this is helping me. Some places are impossible to get into unless you have like 7 girls with you and have bought a bottle, but that happens in all cities.
Shanghai: Generally go to places where a buddy has got a table, which eliminates cover, as long as you bring girls
Seoul: Same as Shanghai.
4. DRINK OF CHOICE
NY: Grey Goose Martini
Paris: Grey Goose Martini
Shanghai: Chivas with Green Tea
Seoul: Soju, Johnny Walker
5. MUSIC
NY: Hip Hop
Paris: House and Electronica
Shanghai: Hip Hop (American, Chinese)
Seoul: K-pop
6. FLIRT
NY: Easy
Paris: Need to be able to speak French, girls can't/won't speak English
Shanghai: Generally need to be able to speak Chinese, but you can get by without it if you are a reasonably good looking guy.
Korea: If you don't speak Korean, you are limited to certain geographic locations and venues in Seoul.
7. CONVERSATION
NY: "Hi I'm Becky. I like your shirt!"
Paris: "Ou viens vous/tu? Etats Unis?" (Where are you from? The United States?)
Shanghai: (In Chinese) "Are you Korean? You look Korean."
Seoul: (In Korean) "Are you Chinese? You look Chinese."
8. DANCE
NY: Girls get tipsy and grind on you.
Paris: Girls get tipsy but house music doesn't translate into grinding. People dance individually.
Shanghai: Terrible dancers.
Seoul: People can dance to hip hop. Not much grinding.
9. COMMUNICATIONS
NY: Girls answer texts, usually calls
Paris: Girls never answer texts, but always anwer calls
Shanghai: Textaholic
Seoul: Textaholic
10. THE AFTER PARTY
NY: Pacha
Paris: Fontainebleau lol
Shanghai: KTV
Seoul: Noraebang
It is very difficult for me to choose a "best" city. Also, I reaching a stage in my life where I feel like I might be done with that crazy 6 AM all night crusader mentality.
We'll see what happens when I'm back in Asia....
Growing up in New York, studying and working abroad in Seoul and Shanghai, and now living in Paris, I have experienced the best, worst, and most absurd that American, French, and Asian nightlife has to offer. In this post, I will document the similarities and (mostly) differences I've seen between New York, Paris, Seoul, and Shanghai. This obviously doesn't apply completely across the board, this is mostly based on my personal experiences in the specific places I frequent.
1. PREGAMING
NY: Meet at 10, girls show up at 11, Vodka/Red Bulls and leave the crib at 12
Paris: Expensive French dinner that starts at 9 and ends at 11, red wine and/or beer. Go straight to the club or bar with who you are with and in the clothes you are in.
Shanghai: When I was around, we started at the crib or at windows, but windows has shut down.
Seoul: No pregame.
2. TRANSPORTATION
NY: Metro then Cabs - unless someone is driving that night
Paris: SNCF then Metro.
Shanghai: Cabs - unless someone's driver is willing to work at 4 AM
Seoul: Metro then Cabs
3. THE VENUE
NY: Call whoever I know that is working at the bar/club that night, usually able to skip the line.
Paris: Same deal, but the cover prices are killing me. Language barrier was a serious issue in Sept/Oct but I am semi-functional now and this is helping me. Some places are impossible to get into unless you have like 7 girls with you and have bought a bottle, but that happens in all cities.
Shanghai: Generally go to places where a buddy has got a table, which eliminates cover, as long as you bring girls
Seoul: Same as Shanghai.
4. DRINK OF CHOICE
NY: Grey Goose Martini
Paris: Grey Goose Martini
Shanghai: Chivas with Green Tea
Seoul: Soju, Johnny Walker
5. MUSIC
NY: Hip Hop
Paris: House and Electronica
Shanghai: Hip Hop (American, Chinese)
Seoul: K-pop
6. FLIRT
NY: Easy
Paris: Need to be able to speak French, girls can't/won't speak English
Shanghai: Generally need to be able to speak Chinese, but you can get by without it if you are a reasonably good looking guy.
Korea: If you don't speak Korean, you are limited to certain geographic locations and venues in Seoul.
7. CONVERSATION
NY: "Hi I'm Becky. I like your shirt!"
Paris: "Ou viens vous/tu? Etats Unis?" (Where are you from? The United States?)
Shanghai: (In Chinese) "Are you Korean? You look Korean."
Seoul: (In Korean) "Are you Chinese? You look Chinese."
8. DANCE
NY: Girls get tipsy and grind on you.
Paris: Girls get tipsy but house music doesn't translate into grinding. People dance individually.
Shanghai: Terrible dancers.
Seoul: People can dance to hip hop. Not much grinding.
9. COMMUNICATIONS
NY: Girls answer texts, usually calls
Paris: Girls never answer texts, but always anwer calls
Shanghai: Textaholic
Seoul: Textaholic
10. THE AFTER PARTY
NY: Pacha
Paris: Fontainebleau lol
Shanghai: KTV
Seoul: Noraebang
It is very difficult for me to choose a "best" city. Also, I reaching a stage in my life where I feel like I might be done with that crazy 6 AM all night crusader mentality.
We'll see what happens when I'm back in Asia....